Springfield Primary Academy

Inspection of a good school: Springfield Primary Academy Springwood Crescent, Grimsby, North East Lincolnshire DN33 3HG

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Outcome

Springfield Primary Academy continues to be a good school.

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Outcome

The principal of this school is Tina Storr. This school is part of The Enquire Learning Trust, which means other people in the trust also have responsibility for running the school. The trust is run by the chief executive officer, Darren Holmes, and overseen by a board of trustees, chaired by Delyse Turrell.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are happy at Springfield Primary Academy. They are proud to attend school. Pupils value the opportunities that they have to contribute their own ideas during learning discussions.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils have positive attitudes towards their learning. They enjoy learning in all subjects of the curriculum. Pupils know that the school has high expectations of their achievement. Typically, they meet these expectations. Pupils are eager to receive rewards when they try their best. For example, they earn certificates, stickers and class points. Most pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), achieve well. They are ready for the next stage in their education.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils are polite and respectful. They have an age-appropriate understanding of equality and diversity. Pupils told the inspector that ‘no one is better than anyone else’. Pupils have a strong understanding of the school’s values of care, collaboration and challenge. They spoke confidently about how these morals are central to their lives in school and beyond.

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What is it like to attend this school?

Pupils benefit from a variety of opportunities to learn outside the classroom. They have a range of residential trips and visits to the local area and further afield. Pupils enjoy clubs and activities, such as sports, gymnastics, art and cookery.

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What does the school do well and what does it need to do better?

Pupils benefit from a broad, balanced and ambitious curriculum. The school has thought carefully about the small steps of knowledge that pupils should learn and when this should happen. The curriculum includes rich opportunities for pupils to find out about the 3 and 4 October 2023

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history and characteristics of their local area. Most pupils, including children in early years, learn well.

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The school and the trust provide staff with an effective programme of training. This helps them to develop their curriculum knowledge and expertise. Teachers select appropriate activities in lessons and regularly check how well pupils acquire new content. They recognise if pupils fall behind and adapt future lessons to address any gaps in pupils’ knowledge. Typically, teachers deliver the curriculum well. However, in some subjects, teachers do not make their explanations clear enough. In these lessons, pupils find it difficult to explain what they have learned.

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The school identifies pupils with SEND quickly. Staff support pupils with SEND to access the same curriculum as their peers. The school works closely with parents and carers, and with specialist professionals, to identify and address pupils’ individual needs. As a result, pupils with SEND typically achieve well.

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Reading is prioritised throughout the school. Staff immerse pupils in a range of high- quality and carefully chosen texts. They help to foster pupils’ love of reading from the moment that children start in Nursery. Pupils enjoy choosing books to read at home. The school offers curriculum workshops for parents to boost their confidence in supporting their children’s reading at home.

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Children begin to learn phonics from the beginning of Reception. The school has equipped staff with the knowledge and skills to deliver the phonics programme well. Staff follow the agreed approaches to teaching reading with fidelity. They provide pupils with extra support if they struggle or fall behind in their reading. Most pupils learn to be fluent and accurate readers.

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Typically, pupils behave well across the school. Children quickly settle into school life when they start in early years. They learn the expectations and the routines to follow. This helps children to have a strong sense of belonging and to engage in purposeful learning. During lessons, most pupils focus well. Incidents of low-level disruption to learning are rare.

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The school supports pupils’ wider development well. Pupils carry out leadership roles with pride. For example, they take on the roles of school councillors, digital leaders and eco- council members. Pupils appreciate the importance of caring for people in the school and in the community. They sing at the local care home and collect food to help others who are less fortunate than themselves. Pupils have aspirations for their future lives, such as to be solicitors, footballers and teachers.

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Trustees and members of the academy improvement committee work extremely closely with the school. There is a sharp and unrelenting focus on supporting and challenging the school to continue to improve the quality of education that pupils receive. The trust and the school support staff to fulfil their roles well, including by reducing their workload and providing rich opportunities for staff to collaborate across the trust. Staff work in a long- serving and positive team. They are committed to contributing to the school’s continual improvement journey. 3 and 4 October 2023

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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(Information for the school and appropriate authority)

 At times, in a small number of subjects, teachers do not make their explanations in lessons clear enough. This means that some pupils do not learn as much as they could and find it difficult to explain what they have learned. The school should support all staff to help pupils fully embed knowledge so that they know and remember more.

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Background

When we have judged a school to be good, we will then normally go into the school about once every four years to confirm that the school remains good. This is called an ungraded inspection, and it is carried out under section 8 of the Education Act 2005. We do not give graded judgements on an ungraded inspection. However, if we find evidence that a school would now receive a higher or lower grade, then the next inspection will be a graded inspection, which is carried out under section 5 of the Act. Usually this is within one to two years of the date of the ungraded inspection. If we have serious concerns about safeguarding, behaviour or the quality of education, we will deem the ungraded inspection a graded inspection immediately.

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Background

This is the first ungraded inspection since we judged the school to be good in July 2018.

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How can I feed back my views?

find out what other parents and carers think. We use information from Ofsted Parent View when deciding which schools to inspect, when to inspect them and as part of their inspection.

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How can I feed back my views?

The Department for Education has further guidance on how to complain about a school.

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Further information

You can search for published performance information about the school.

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Further information

In the report, ‘disadvantaged pupils’ is used to mean pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND); pupils who meet the definition of children in need of help and protection ; pupils receiving statutory local authority support from a social worker; and pupils who otherwise meet the criteria used for deciding the school’s pupil premium funding (this includes pupils claiming free school meals at any point in the last six years, looked after children (children in local authority care) and/or children who left care through adoption or another formal route). 3 and 4 October 2023

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School details

Website www.springfieldprimaryacademy.net

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School details

Dates of previous inspection 17 and 18 July 2018, under section 5 of the Education Act 2005

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Information about this school

 The school is part of The Enquire Learning Trust.  Since the previous inspection, a new principal has been appointed.  The school provides a before- and after-school club for pupils.  The school does not make use of alternative provision.

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Information about this inspection

Inspections are a point-in-time judgement about the quality of a school’s education provision.

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Information about this inspection

This was the first routine inspection the school had received since the COVID-19 pandemic began. The inspector discussed the impact of the pandemic with the school and has taken that into account in his evaluation of the school.

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Information about this inspection

 The inspector carried out deep dives in early reading, mathematics and geography. For each deep dive, the inspector held discussions about the curriculum, visited a sample 3 and 4 October 2023

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of lessons and spoke with teachers. He also spoke with some pupils about their learning and looked at samples of pupils’ work.  The inspector observed some pupils from Years 1 to 3 reading with a familiar adult. He discussed reading with a group of older pupils.  The inspector spoke with groups of pupils about their experiences at school. He also took account of the responses to Ofsted’s pupil survey.  The inspector observed how pupils behaved around the school, including during breaktime and lunchtime and at breakfast club.  The inspector met with the principal and other leaders of the school. He met with the chief executive officer of The Enquire Learning Trust. The inspector also met with members of the academy improvement committee and trustees, including the chair.  To evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding, the inspector: reviewed the single central record; took account of the views of leaders, staff and pupils; and considered

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the extent to which the school has created an open and positive culture around safeguarding that puts pupils’ interests first.  The inspector took account of the responses to Ofsted’s online survey for staff. He spoke with staff about their workload and their well-being.  The inspector took account of the responses to Ofsted Parent View, including the free- text comments.

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Inspection team

David Lobodzinski, lead inspector Ofsted Inspector 3 and 4 October 2023

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regulates and inspects to achieve excellence in the care of children and young people, and in education and skills for learners of all ages. It regulates and inspects childcare and children’s social care, and inspects the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, further education and skills, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It assesses council children’s services, and inspects services for children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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